WIAW: Busy Body

How is your week or your Wednesday going? Mine has been just crazy with all of these meetings and this new information coming at me. It’s exciting but terrifying at the same time! I guess, really, I’m just ready to get started with this student teaching business. 🙂 (The whole 4:50 wake-up call…not so much.)

While I haven’t started yet, I’ve obviously been very busy, so unfortunately blogging has taken a back seat. Still, thank you all so much for your sweet comments and, of course, for reading!

Like I mentioned last week, my morning Greek yogurt bowls have changed from including berries (which I miss so dearly) to including raisins. As far as I can tell, this combination doesn’t immediately set off my reflux. (It might contribute to it later in the day, though. I’m not sure.) Low acid diets do not include any dairy, but seeing as Greek yogurt is the only thing that keeps my stomach happy and me full for more than an hour, I’ve decided to include it and cut back on dairy the rest of my day.

Other than that, I did try one different breakfast on Sunday, just to see how my system reacted to it. I made up a batch of baked banana oatmeal, as I had heard that oats and bananas were some of the best foods for acid.

It was pretty good and completely natural, which I know is good for acid. However, I’m not too sure that it helped at all. It didn’t hurt, but I’m just going to stick with my yogurt bowls. Worth a try, I suppose!

Lunches

I also read that salads are good for low-acid diets. Raw, leafy greens are specifically recommended, so I’ve been trying to get a lot of those in lately. I’ve also been dolling my salads up with chicken, dried cranberries (not good for acid, but I find I need that sharp taste to break up the monotony), edamame, and even roasted potatoes. I’ve been trying not to include any vinegar/vinaigrette/dressing on them at all. You can see in this picture that I had been slicing up some string cheese, but I don’t think I’ll do that any more. The extra protein is nice, but again, I want to stay away from dairy as much as possible.

Snacks

This has been the most difficult area of eats, I think. We have stopped buying crackers and chips for the most part, so that has been nice to not even have that temptation. (Fried foods and white wheat flour are not great for acid.) However, I do like to – actually need to – snack, which is the problem. In the past I would reach for a Chobani or some fruit, but sadly my system does not like either of those things any more. And since I’ve eliminated corn from my diet, even popcorn, a relatively healthy snack, is out.

While I have had the occasional handful of grapes or a peach, the only fruit I’ve been allowing myself to have a lot of has been cantaloupe and watermelon, because according to the pH scale, they’re the least acidic.

Dinners

Some low-acid diets I’ve read about advise against animal protein, and some say it’s ok. For now, because I can’t have eggs and nuts (which, of course, are great for low-acid diets), I’ve been eating chicken and salmon. I’m allergic to turkey, and pork and beef are supposedly bad for reflux, so all of those meats are out. So far, the proteins I am eating don’t seem to be bothering me.

(Lemon is one of the worst things, but I figure squeezing some juice on top of the broccoli is better than topping it with cheese or butter. The chicken was stuffed with a bit of cheese and some spinach – hence the spikes. 😉 )

I’ve been eating as much veg as possible, and for sides, I’ve been enjoying roasted potatoes, brown rice, and quinoa.

Desserts

This is the one area I know I can do better. Ice cream is probably one of the worst things I could be eating for my kind of diet, as it is dairy and high in fat – both bad for acid reflux – but unfortunately, I haven’t been good at staying away from it. I’m going to try harder this week, though. Hopefully when I do, I will feel better!

This week is the last week of my summer long gym membership. I’m so sad!! Not only is it a great gym (we go to our local Snap Fitness), but I’ve really gotten into weight lifting as of late, and I love it. I feel so much stronger in everything that I do (especially running!) and I can see and feel definition in my arms, which is a lifelong dream of mine. 🙂 Anyway, with this membership ending, I’m worried that I won’t have too many lifting options. My mom and I are going to set up our weight set this weekend, so we’ll see what that provides!

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I’d better get going – lots of stuff to do! Have a great day, everyone!

They sure do, but at least it’s fruit!
I’m going to have to find some time to make my own ice cream, definitely. I’m thinking coconut milk…? I’ll have to scour the internet for recipes this weekend. 🙂
Thanks!

Blogging’s definitely taking a back seat right now for me, until I get into the groove of nursing school. Ay yi yi!
I also recently started setting my alarm earlier- 5:50, to get up, hubby starts the coffee, i drink a lot of water, and we drive to the track five minutes away and walk/run a few laps. It’s good, and I’m surprised at how easily I’ve gotten up as opposed to the past when it felt like such a chore. Plus it’s fun seeing the sunrise, and is a great thing for seasonal affective disorder to try to get as much daylight as possible, if you can.
I really admire your tenacity, Liv! You’re so busy and trying to stay so healthy, in the face of all these dietary obstacles. Nice work so far 🙂

Oh I bet, I’ve heard nursing school is crazy busy.
That sounds like such a great morning routine! I’ll be seeing lots of sunrises on my way to the school, and thankfully I’ll get out of work in time to have some hours of daylight in the evening, too. That’s a good point, though!
Aw, thanks Christy. 🙂

I can totally relate to being busy and having blogging take a back seat. I suppose life happens though. Your meals look really tasty even if you are having to make a change from what you usually have. I love acidic things like lemons!

Awwr girl… Trying to figure out a diet that works for you is always a pain in the butt at the beginning, but it gets easier the longer you do it. I do hope that you find something that helps though, because stomach problems are just the worst.